Police today announced that Nick Reiner, the son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner is being charged with two counts of first-degree murder after his parents' deaths. The two were found dead in their Los Angeles home on Sunday.

We're closing our live coverage of this story for now, but you can stay up-to-date on all the developments here: Murder charges filed against Nick Reiner for allegedly killing parents

And you can see how fans in Hollywood reacted to the couples' death below:

Joe Inwood
World news correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

“He was what is known in Hollywood is known as a mensch; just an all-around trustworthy, reliable, wonderful person, and he was.”

That was the first thing Harry Shearer said, when we spoke on the phone a short while ago. He wrote and starred in the comedy classic This is Spinal Tap with Rob Reiner.

He then gave me his reaction when he first heard the news of his friend’s death.

“I didn't believe it. I thought ‘that can’t be true’. Originally, we thought it might have been a break-in, then it got worse and worse, as this story became more personal and more shocking in its details.

They had known each other for decades.

“I have these this memory of sitting around his office and it was just non-stop laughs. Rob was the kind of funny person that didn't fear or resent being around other people who were funny.”

“He seemed like a really good dad, he was a good friend. He was very voluble in his political comments. You could sail along in Hollywood very easily without doing that and it was ballsy of him to put his career and his professional associations on the line for the stuff that he believed in.”

I asked him what he will remember Rob Reiner for.

“Steadfastness as a friend and partner and director. You could rely on him. It's horrible. The longer and the longer story goes on,the worse it gets.”

Image source, Reuters

Tributes continue to pour in from more stars in the film and television world for director Rob Reiner and his wife, film producer Michele Reiner.

Jerry Seinfeld, who co-created the eponymous comedy sitcom with Larry David, says the show's success would not have been realised without Rob Reiner. In a tribute posted on Instagram,

"Our show would have never happened without him. He saw something no one else could," he wrote. "When nobody at the network liked the early episodes, he saved us from cancellation."

Seinfeld went on to pay tribute to Rob and Michele as a couple, writing: "Rob and Michele married right as our show was starting and they became an imprint for me of how it’s supposed to work, each one broadening the other."

He adds: "Their death, together, is impossibly sad."

Image source, Getty Images

The family openly discussed Nick Reiner's long struggles with substance abuse and an addiction to hard drugs ahead of the release of his semi-autobiographical 2015 film, Being Charlie.

The father and son had teamed up to write and direct the movie about a teenager addicted to drugs and his difficult road to recovery.

The Princess Bride director and his wife said that they had felt desperate during their son's struggles, but when he would tell them that a rehab program wasn't working, they didn't always listen and took the word of the professionals treating their son. He was in and out of rehab centres for years and experienced homelessness as a teenager.

"We were so influenced by these people. They would tell us he's a liar, that he was trying to manipulate us. And we believed them," Michele Reiner told the Los Angeles Times, external in 2015.

Rob Reiner added: "We listened to them when we should have been listening to our son."

The film appeared to provide healing for the family.

Rob Reiner said that by the time they started making the movie their relationship "had gotten so much closer".

Likewise, Nick Reiner told Variety, external at the time that their relationship grew during the process. Although he loved working with his dad on the film, he added that he wanted to be independent and complete his own projects.

Image source, Reuters

While prosecutors said they could not share many specific pieces of evidence that would be presented in court, they announced that the son of Rob and Michele Reiner has been charged with first degree murder, with a special circumstance of multiple murders.

Those charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison - or the death penalty, though prosecutors have yet to decide whether to pursue that.

The district attorney says the crime is believed to have been committed with a knife.

Police also said Nick Reiner was found in a Los Angeles park and was arrested without incident.

Officials says they can't specify the time of death as they await a coroner's report. Asked about who made the 911 call, Los Angeles police says they were made aware through a request of assistance from the Los Angeles Fire Department which first responded to the scene.

Officers then "determined a crime has occurred" who notified the Robbery and Homicide Division.

Hochman is asked by a reporter to what extent prosecutors consider the wishes of the family members of victims when making their decision to file charges.

"In these cases, we will take the thoughts and desires of the family into consideration when making that decision," he says.

And with that last question, the news conference ends.

The DA is asked whether there is any evidence of "mental illness", and says it is too early to say.

"If there is evidence of mental illness, it will appear in court, in whatever details the defence seeks to present," he speculates.

He says the trial process will "be very thorough" and rejects that the case will be riddled with delays.

It comes after a hearing for Nick Reiner was delayed this morning because jail officials ruled that he was not medically fit enough to attend.

Officials say that Nick Reiner was found through "good, solid police work" by detectives and the US Marshal Service. However, they wouldn't offer details that could "taint the investigation". They also don't answer a question about potential drug use.

Hochman says any potential evidence of mental illness will come out in the appropriate way in court.

A reporter asks why prosecutors are charging first degree murder with "a special circumstance of multiple murders".

Hochman says they are bringing this charge because there were two killings, both Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Reiner.

Officials say the public should only receive their news on this case from official sources.

"Please do not rely on rank speculation, rumour or hearsay, to thinking that you understand anything that happened in this case," says the district attorney.

LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell then announces that charges have been filed and goes on to extend his condolences to all who are affected.

"This case is heartbreaking and deeply personal, not only for the Reiner family and their loved ones, but for the entire city," he says.

"We extend our deepest condolences to everyone affected by this tragedy."

Image source, Los Angeles District Attorney's Office

Hochman says prosecuting cases involving family members are "some of most challenging and heart-wrenching cases" his office faces "because of the intimate and often brutal nature of the crimes involved".

He goes on to gives tribute to the Reiners describing Rob as "an iconic force" in the entertainment industry and Michele as an "equally iconic photographer and producer."

"Their loss is beyond tragic," he says. "We will commit ourselves to bringing their murderer to justice",

Hochman says that Nick Reiner will be brought to court today after charges are filed and after getting "medical clearance". He says Reiner is undergoing that process now.

He'll be read the charges at the arraignment and and will enter a plea of guilty or not guilty in court.

District Attorney Hochman says that for the murder counts Nick Reiner faces, the charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty.

He says no decision has been made yet on whether prosecutors will pursue the death penalty.

Prosecutor Nathan Hochman kicks off the news briefing by announcing charges against Nick Reiner.

He is facing two counts of first degree murder, "with a special circumstance of multiple murders," he says.

He adds that the crime is believed to have been committed with a knife, and that he is facing life in prison. "No decision has yet been made with respect to death penalty," he says.

The news conference with Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman is just beginning.

The event is being held to formally announce charges against Nick Reiner, 32, who has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his parents, Rob and Michele Reiner.

The suspect was originally expected to appear in court on Tuesday morning, but did not, after his lawyer said he had not been "medically cleared" by jail officials to attend.

We're expecting Los Angeles police to bring us an update on the investigation into Rob and Michele Reiners' deaths shortly.

You can follow along here or click watch live above.

Image source, Getty Images

Actress Jane Fonda says she saw Rob and Michele Reiner the night before they were found dead at their home. In a written tribute, the Book Club star described the couple as "wonderful, caring, smart, funny, generous people".

She says they were "always coming up with ideas for how to make the world better, kinder. They had been helping me launch the Committee for the First Amendment."

Fonda recalled seeing them shortly before the fateful night. "I saw them night before last looking healthy and happy. I am reeling with grief. Stunned."

Here is everything that we know happened after Rob and Michele Reiner died in their Los Angeles home on Sunday:

• Emergency services were called to provide medical aid at the Reiners' home in Brentwood, California, at about 15:38 local time (23:38 GMT)
• Two people - later identified as Rob Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele, 68 - were pronounced dead at the scene
• The couple's youngest child, daughter Romy, found their bodies, CBS reports
• Nick Reiner was arrested several hours later, at about 21:15 local time
• The Reiners had suffered multiple stab wounds, CBS News reported. Their cause of death has not officially been released.
• Investigators have not publicly outlined a motive, but sources have since told CBS that Rob and Nick Reiner had engaged in a brief but loud argument during a party the previous evening

Nardine Saad
in Los Angeles

Nick Reiner is being represented by celebrity defence attorney Alan Jackson, according to the BBC's US News partner CBS News.

Jackson previously represented disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein in his Los Angeles rape case. Jackson told CBS that Reiner will not appear in court on Tuesday because he has not been "medically cleared" to do so.

A spokesperson for Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman confirmed to the BBC on Tuesday that "he's a medical miss out".

A case has been presented to the district attorney's office for filing consideration and is under review, the spokesperson said.

Hochman, along with Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell, will provide more details about the case at a news conference in approximately 30 minutes.